Edu 321 Wk1 Dis1

Sara has lived in the United States for six months. She seems withdrawn and does not socialize much with other students. She was educated in her home country and, in fact, studied some English as a foreign language in school. Her teachers are pleased with her work, given the limited time she has been in the country. What type of student is she, and what is an appropriate educational program for her? What do you think the relationship is between an appropriate academic program and her behavior? Respond to at least two of your classmates' postings.
The type of student that Sara is would fit in tier one category because like the textbook said, “students who are learning English often experience learning and behavior difficulties that are more associated with the strain of adapting to a new culture and learning a new language than with some type of disability.” (Echevarria & Graves, 2011) I think that’s why she is shy and doesn’t socialize much. It also said that her teachers are pleased with her work, so that would say that she is a good student but is just having difficulties understanding. I think that the newcomer programs would help her adjust to life in America and maybe they would have programs available for her family so they can all feel more comfortable together. I think a combination of other programs would help her too, like transitional bilingual education so she can understand what she is doing in both languages and English language development so she can have a block of time to really focus and be with other student that are sharing her struggles. Maybe then she can start to socialize, build a support and make friends. I think that if she gets the appropriate academic programs she can feel more confident in herself and in her work and therefore would open up in her classroom. I know for me personally, and being a product of ESL it really helped my open up in my grade school days. During my kindergarten and first grade years, people thought I was a mute